Looking back at Milan Design Week 2018

2 May 2018

In April, Minister of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) Ingrid van Engelshoven paid a two-day visit to the Milan Design Week 2018. Together with the Dutch consulate, the Fund organized a guided tour to give the minister an impression of the scope and international position of the Dutch design field. Various designers welcomed the minister to their presentations and told about their work. The fair week, which centres on the Salone del Mobile, is the place to be for product and furniture designers to present themselves and meet various professionals from the international design world.

The delegation visited the presentations supported by the Fund via the Open Call Salone del Mobile Milan 2018. In addition, a number of larger, mainly Dutch presentations were seen. The Salone Satellite and Galeria Rossana Orlandi - well-known springboards to an international audience for young designers - and the new location by curator Anne van der Zwaag entitled Bar Anne, were also included in the programme.

Dutch Invertuals - Mutant Matter

digitalization

Digitalization was a recurring theme in several presentations. The jewellery designs in the presentation 'Device People' by chp...? jewellery explore the increasing use of smartphones and other devices and the impact this has on our lives. Lidewij Edelkoort and Kiki van Eijk, commissioned by Google, are working on a series of products under the name 'Softwear' where a more sensory experience of hardware plays a central role.

Tijs Gilde Studio combines the theme of digitalization with material research and showed a number of designs at Satellite that originated from studies with stones and pigments. 'Counter digital' reacts to a world that is digitalizing more and more. His response to this situation is contra-digital objects arising from material experiments that surprise and stimulate the senses.

Lidewij Edelkoort and Kiki van Eijk - Softwear

reuse

We find the use and reuse of material with Dutch Invertuals, who are showing new adaptations of residual material from the Anthropocene in 'Mutant Matter'. Théophile Blandet has made a cabinet with polluting plastic that the EU will forbid in the future: a product that will be seen as very 'valuable' in the future. Shahar Livne has developed Lithoplast, a mixture of plastics washed ashore, which she processes to produce altar-like bowls and objects.

Craft and craftsmanship were given attention at the Crafts Council Nederland and Masterly. The Dutch in Milano. The Crafts Council Nederland organized a workshop in their presentation space for Emma Wessels, Gino Anthonisse and Christa van der Meer and Italian designers Sara Ricciardi, Astrid Luglio and Agustina Bottoni. They were given a lesson in the technique of macramé from an Italian master.

Crafts Council Nederland - HOW&WOW - cooperazione!

experiment & research

Experiment and research were highlighted by Dutch Invertuals, Better Known As, BELéN and the KABK. At the performative presentation Ready, Set, Go! by collective Better Known As, visitors could not only view the work, but also experience the process of creating the image.

Download the brochure here with more information about the 11 presentations in Milan that were supported by the Fund, with a short introduction by art and design theorist Louise Schouwenberg.

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Last December, the Fund issued four different open calls where Dutch designers and cultural organizations were invited to submit a project plan for a project, intervention or process that deploys design for sustainable and inclusive urbanization in Turkey, Morocco, Egypt or Russia. An interdisciplinary committee with expertise in the countries concerned made a selection from 56 proposals.

The 16 selected projects offer opportunities that include improving living conditions and social cohesion, working together with different target groups, utilizing technology for social innovation and exploring new meanings of cultural heritage. This selection provides an initial impulse for setting up and reinforcing collaborations between makers in the four countries and the Netherlands. Where knowledge is developed and shared for the challenges associated with urbanization.

The number of submissions for this first series of open calls was high and almost evenly distributed over the four countries, with Russia standing out with 20 applications. There were also 13 applications for Morocco, 12 for Egypt and 11 for Turkey. Per country, 4 projects were selected for the first phase, with the option for submitting a follow-up application for the second phase.

The following stood out in the submissions per country:

Turkey

The submissions for Turkey related to both large and small cities, instead of a mono-focus on Istanbul. This distribution of projects over the country makes the proposals interesting and sometimes surprising. A total of 11 applications is a modest harvest of entries, considering the long-standing relationships between the Netherlands and Turkey in the cultural sphere, and the challenges associated with urbanization in Turkey. One possible explanation is that the aim is to achieve collaborations with the local authorities and that is particularly challenging. The composition of the teams and expertise turned out to match only in varying degrees the themes and objectives of the projects, on both the Dutch and Turkish sides. The balance in reciprocity, the relevance of the issue and the approach was good in the selected projects. How collaboration and reciprocity are to be safeguarded and organized in the subsequent course of the projects requires further development for the second phase. The partnerships were the deciding factor for the selection of projects in Turkey.

Geographically, the applications were very widespread, from Moscow to Siberia and even Svobodny, towards the borders with China and Japan. This is an interesting and positive yield. The level and quality of the applications varied significantly in the 20 submissions for the open call Russia. Several applications focused on ‘mono-towns’. This is the phenomenon of mono-functional cities that in their development – composition of services, economy and inhabitants – specifically focus on a particular industry. In terms of themes, these applications were similar to each other. The differences in approach and method therefore weighed more heavily. Many applications were focused on improving or developing the public space – a development that has recently been utilized in Russian cities. Only a few applications had a distinctive approach to this. One of the reasons for this could be that the same Russian partner, an important player in the development of public space, was often included in the project teams. On the whole, it was noticeable that 2 to 3 Russian partners were frequently mentioned in the applications. A few projects had an extremely good approach with regard to accessing local partners, particularly users, which is one of the greatest challenges in Russia in the area of spatial issues. In general, something that stood out in the budgets was that the hourly rates in Russia are lower in comparison with the rates in the Netherlands. This is a realistic representation and, according to the advisers, it is all the more important to be clear about how the reciprocity has been organized in the collaborative relationship. The approach chosen was decisive when selecting the projects in Russia.

The submissions for Egypt varied in their approach and the issue chosen. Many projects focused on Cairo, despite the fact that Egypt is a large country. It is, after all, the city where many things are centralized, including art and culture. Cairo is certainly the perfect place to start working in Egypt and to build up relationships from there. The strongest applications were to be found on the interface between art, culture and heritage. They are small in terms of set-up and implementation, but great in potential impact and for knowledge development and sharing. There are still opportunities and scope for small-scale projects in Egypt. Large-scale, urban design projects require collaboration with the authorities at national or local level and that is extremely difficult, perhaps even unrealistic, considering the time frame of the projects. However, the committee noted that heritage as a main theme was conspicuously absent in the applications. This is however a very relevant topic in the Egyptian context, for both material and immaterial heritage. A positive aspect is that a few projects made this connection and took up a position towards approaching heritage from a designer's perspective. It was noticeable that one particular local partner appeared several times in different applications. Building up relationships between various Dutch and Egyptian parties appears to be necessary. On the Dutch side, the main applicant or other parties involved appeared to be less well-matched with the theme or approach. From the applications, it emerged that the necessary cultural sensitivity (from the Dutch perspective) of the social context was not always present. This is crucial when working together on the basis of reciprocity. Deciding factors for the selection of projects in Egypt were the relevance of the themes and the partnerships entered into for the purpose.

Inspiring approaches to themes and collaborations – ranging from establishment to grassroots – characterized the applications focused on Morocco. There was a good geographical spread: Meknes, Casablanca, Rabat, Tanger in the north and Tiznit in the south. Remarkably enough, no projects focused on Marrakech. In terms of themes, various projects differed significantly in their degree of development. A few projects resembled ‘classic’ architectural projects that lay close to project development. In addition, the social or cultural significance and aim of the project were not always very clear. A balanced distribution of the budgets between the Dutch and Moroccan parties was not the case in all of the applications. In many projects, the requested amount for the first phase was intended in its entirety for the Dutch party, without clear insight into the contribution from the Moroccan side. Either in kind or financially. How the reciprocity is organized in the collaboration was already described in some project proposals, but attention is required for further development. In a number of applications, a Dutch team member with Moroccan roots is involved. The Moroccan diaspora is a valuable connection in building relationships and understanding between the Netherlands and Morocco, but also in creating together and sharing knowledge. Deciding factors for the selection of projects in Morocco were the approach to the collaboration and the type of projects (study + pilot).

Every open call specifically focused on one of the four countries, but they are all part of a single programme. For this reason the choice was made to put together a special committee, which includes experts per country, who are working in one of the fields of the creative industry and are able to think in an interdisciplinary way. The members of the committee are:

The Creative Industries Fund NL is conducting a four-year programme within the policy framework of the International Culture Policy 2017-2020 (objective 2) with funding from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, entitled ‘Sustainable and inclusive cities through design’. Central to the programme is the role and deployment of design and design thinking to question and provide solutions for rapid urbanization and the corresponding social themes. Cross-disciplinary working with relevant stakeholders in Turkey is encouraged, both within and beyond the design disciplines, where it revolves around providing opportunities for collaboration between Turkey and the Netherlands on an equal footing and strengthening the trust and understanding between the two countries.

Photo above: Grounded Urban Practices, Non Fiction and Cluster

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Looking back at Thursday Night Live! They invented a new machine...

Looking back at Thursday Night Live! They invented a new machine...

3 May 2018

Last week, Het Nieuwe Instituut and the Creative Industries Fund NL organized Thursday Night Live!. An evening about the technologies and imaginaries of automation, with the five selected projects of the Open Call for the extended program of the Dutch pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2018. The event is one in a series of three where Het Nieuwe Instituut and the Creative Industries Fund NL work together on the Architecture Biennale and WORK BODY LEISURE, the theme of the Dutch pavilion.

A seaman from a disappearing island, an animator in a space devoid of daylight, a monster eating a machine. These were just some of the figures that came along on an evening that focused on the impact of automation and robotization on work, and the spaces in which it takes place. Because, as the projects demonstrate, work will not disappear but will most likely change dramatically under the influence of these developments. After short presentations of the selected projects, the teams entered into a discussion with Marina Otero Verzier, curator of the Dutch pavilion, under the direction of Willem Schinkel, professor of social theory and external advisor of the Open Call.

The five projects were united by a search for the systems, such as logistical systems, which increasingly structure our world, and which are generally not accessible. The Institute of Patent Infringement, founded by Matthew Stewart and Jane Chew, makes the automated future that Amazon is committed to visible, and has written an open call to hack the Amazon patents where this future is portrayed. Shore Leaves, a video installation by Giuditta Vendrame and Paolo Patelli, focuses on the invisible work of the seamen who man the ships in the ports of Rotterdam and Venice, and the spaces they visit during their shore leave. The efficient logistics systems they are a part of, and the engine rooms where their work takes place, are a preview of what awaits us all, we hear in one of the fragments in their installation.

But, Willem Schinkel wonders, is it even possible to make the invisible logistics systems visible, or have they become too all-encompassing? And if so, is it also possible to appropriate these infrastructures? The Port and the Fall of Icarus by Northscapes explores in a speculative way a series of possible future scenarios for the Port of Rotterdam, and hopes to disrupt the system by creating a moment of alienation. Renderlands, a documentary and installation by Liam Young, goes in search of the render farms and animation studios in India that are largely responsible for the visualizations of Western companies, and asked the workers about their own dreamed-of realities, in order to translate them into a physical installation for the Biennale.

The evening was set to music by a contribution from the fifth team, consisting of Noam Toran with Remco de Jong and Florentijn Boddendijk, who have made a contemporary interpretation of early 20th-century working songs with Songs for Hardworking People, which will provide the soundtrack for the Dutch pavilion.

Willem Schinkel ranks among the sceptics: although the projects demonstrate that automation does not lead to the feared disappearance of work, a multiplication of work is in fact generated that leads to inequality and exploitation. But the projects also show that there really are leads for productive appropriation. Because, as Liam Young states, the systems that are responsible for our production are the same systems that connect people all over the world in the most exceptional ways, and in doing so, make new forms of communality possible.

selection Open Call Venice Architecture Biennale #2 and #3Next to the selection of the extended program of the Dutch pavilion five more projects were selected in the context of the Open Call Architecture Biennale Venice 2018 #2_development budget and the Open Call Architecture Biennale Venice 2018 #3_presentation budget, who provide a physical, spatial contribution to the exploration of the FREESPACE theme during the Venice Architecture Biennale 2018. With the title FREESPACE, general curators of the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, address the relation between architecture and society.

next Thursday Night Live!The 16th edition of the Venice Architecture Biennale will take place from 26 May to 25 November 2018. The Creative Industries Fund and Het Nieuwe Instituut will continue their series of joint events with a reflection on the various explorations of the FREESPACE theme during the Thursday Night Live! on Thursday 5 July 2018.

Text: Sereh MandiasPhoto above: Matthijs Immink

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Looking back at Milan Design Week 2018

The grants awarded in the first round of Digital Culture 2018 are now known. In total, 18 projects are receiving support. These projects include two proposals that focus on Blockchain technology. What do the submitters of these project proposals think of this technology? Is it a hype or is Blockchain going to change the creative industry for ever?

In the Fund's six year's existence, the grant programme for Digital Culture (formerly E-culture) has seen a diverse range of trends come along. Applications relating to Gamification, Virtual Reality, the Internet of Things, Google Glass, Big Data – sometimes a subject or technology seems to linger in the air. In order to keep the committee and the Fund staff up-to-date with new developments, the Fund organizes expert meetings with some regularity. In early 2018, we had discussions with experts, both for and against, about the usefulness or otherwise, the opportunities and the meaning of Blockchain technology for the creative industry. There is no simple answer to these questions, but one thing all the advisers agree on is that new media and new technologies like Blockchain bring new social design challenges.

Blockchain technology – a technology where controlled ‘transactions’ can be carried out between two or more parties without the intervention of an intermediary – covers a wide range of applications. This is perfectly illustrated by the two projects which employ a totally different approach:

prenuptial agreementDesigner Aiwen Yin explores the social potential of Blockchain in her project ‘Poiexixx’. Marriage represents the ultimate example here. Instead of defining relationships in laws and frameworks dictated by the state, Blockchain offers each individual the space to exercise control over every aspect of the union. Speculative or not, the possibility of this application raises fundamental questions – including within the committee – about the way we live and the disruptive function technology can have.

Poiexixx

new business models for creative makers

Less philosophical, but all the more practical for that is the research carried out by Max Peeperkorn into new business models for makers in the creative industry. Peeperkorn observes that makers in the creative sector often still work for very low rates, or even for nothing. In collaboration with Jennifer Kanary Nikolov(a) he aims to bring about a change in this situation – utilizing Blockchain technology – by fixing the value of a creative contribution for a longer period of time. For example, makers who provide creative input to the development of a new product or studio receive a payment from the commissioning client in the intended system in the form of a royalty or dividend in a blockchain. This way, the client can pay the maker for the service provided at a later date, if the product or end result is successful.

Here you can see a complete overview (in Dutch) of all grants awarded in the first round of Digital Culture 2018.

Selection Open Call Venice Architecture Biennale #2 and #3

Selection Open Call Venice Architecture Biennale #2 and #3

22 April 2018

Next to the selection of the parallelprogram of the Dutch pavilion five more projects were selected in the context of the Open Call Architecture Biennale Venice 2018 #2_development budget and the Open Call Architecture Biennale Venice 2018 #3_presentation budget, who provide a physical, spatial contribution to the exploration of the FREESPACE theme during the Architecture Biennale Venice 2018. With the title FREESPACE, general curators of the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, address the relation between architecture and society.

selection Open Call Architecture Biennale Venice 2018 #2_development budgetCase Design (Anne Geenen & Samuel Barclay) and Crimson Architectural Historian were invited to the 16th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia curated by Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, to present an exhibition related to their work and in response to the theme FREESPACE. On request of the curators the content of the exhibition cannot be revealed before the preview of this edition of the Biennale on the 24th and 25th of May.

next Thursday Night Live!The 16th edition of the Venice Architecture Biennale will take place from 26 May to 25 November 2018. The Creative Industries Fund and Het Nieuwe Instituut will continue their series of joint events with a reflection on the various explorations of the FREESPACE theme during the Thursday Night Live! on Thursday 5 July 2018.

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Last week, Het Nieuwe Instituut and the Creative Industries Fund NL organized Thursday Night Live!. An evening about the technologies and imaginaries of automation, with the five selected projects of ... more >

Last December, the Fund issued four different open calls where Dutch designers and cultural organizations were invited to submit a project plan for a project, intervention or process that deploys desi... more >

In April, Minister of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) Ingrid van Engelshoven paid a two-day visit to the Milan Design Week 2018. Together with the Dutch consulate, the Fund organized a guided tou... more >